Windermere ladies’ 1st XI came agonisingly close to only their second win of the season, as they were defeated 1-0 by Garstang 2nd XI in the Lancashire Central League Premier Division last Saturday.

‘Mere were unlucky to get nothing from a very even contest, in which they had their fair share of chances, with captain Katie Harrison proving to be their star performer on the day.

Some great tactical play by Lucie Staniek won an early short corner for the hosts but it was not converted and Garstang counter-attacked, won a short of their own and scored.

Good linking play in defence and midfield earned Mere the majority of possession in the second half and when Garstang broke goalkeeper Maisie Prescot and her defence cleared the danger.

Eventually time ran out for Windermere, who fell to their eighth defeat in a row, but they have a great chance to finally stop the rot when they play bottom side Pendle Forest 3rd XI this weekend.

The men’s 1st XI had their three-match winning run in the North League Division Two West brought to an end, as they were well beaten 6-2 by West Derby at Troutbeck Bridge.

The Wirral side took an early lead, but Archie Dalzell equalised before half-time for Windermere with a clever deflection into the bottom corner.

The hosts then lost busy midfielder Ed Brownell to a hamstring injury in the second half, but this didn’t stop them from taking the lead when Adam Whitehead struck with a signature shot off the back foot. However, their joy was short-lived, as West Derby struck twice in quick succession to snatch the lead for themselves.

In pressing high up the pitch for a leveller, ‘Mere left gaps at the back and were punished three times for a final score that certainly did not reflect the balance of play. They will try and get back to winning ways when they host Brooklands MU 3rd XI on Saturday.

The men’s 2nd XI were held to a 3-3 draw at Lancashire and Morecambe 2nd XI in Division Five North North of the North West League after leading twice.

Will Ganniclifft fired Mere ahead in the sixth minute after good work by man-of-the match Tom Wright down the left freed Jamie Hill to make the telling pass into the D.

Morecambe quickly equalised before failure to clear the danger after a short corner gifted the home side a scrappy second goal.

Michael Shields equalised before half-time from a perfect pass by skipper Jason Balmer and good work by Shields was finished at close range by Teddy Ferguson, only for Morecambe to claim a draw from a late short corner.